About 15 years ago, my sophomore students came to me with a question.

They’d been taking U.S. History from 1865 to the Present — a standard course required by our school to graduate — but they knew they weren’t getting the whole story. Some of them were bored. The lessons were Euro-centric: the accomplishments of various presidents, the goals of the Progressive movement, World War I from a European perspective. They asked me how they could learn more, how I could teach them a more complete story.

So I modeled a new course, based on one I took in college, took it to the school board, and it was approved. It became Race, Gender, and Oppression, and is consistently one of the most popular classes at my school. This semester I’m teaching two sections, a lot for a school of only about 225 students. And it’s not just students of color, or girls, who are taking the class; the demographics of students enrolling in the course match the overall student body.

It’s clear that students are hungry to learn the full, accurate history of our country, whether that’s  through standard introductory history courses or more advanced options like Race, Gender, and Oppression; Women’s Studies; or other classes I teach. Failing to teach them these stories is the equivalent of a math teacher saying that 2+2=6. It’s not the truth, and it only does students a disservice in the long run.

But if a new vision of a “patriotic education,” as defined in the Department of Education’s proposal for new grant priorities, comes about, I’m afraid that is what will happen. The Department of Education’s vision seems to prioritize being comfortable, and emphasize celebrating over reflecting. There’s nothing wrong with celebrating America, but it’s important to reflect on its struggles, challenges, and those who have undertaken acts of resistance to bring about change.

Consider a lesson on resistance by enslaved people. In my African American History class, we learn about the various types of resistance. Under the guise of “patriotic education,” though, important acts of violent opposition, like the Nat Turner Rebellion, could be overlooked in favor of still important — but to some, more palatable — acts, like escaping via the Underground Railroad. Stories of figures like Turner, or Carrie Nation, who took a hatchet to bottles of alcohol in bars to support Prohibition, could be lost if we focus on “unifying” and “ennobling” themes as the Department of Education advocates.

Painting over these lessons doesn’t help students. The students who take my classes are often shocked to learn that for centuries, women didn’t have the right to divorce, even if they were facing abuse at the hands of their husbands, or that Black women were intentionally kept out of the women’s suffrage movement. They’re disappointed that they didn’t learn about these facts until they took more advanced classes in their final years of high school, rather than in the basic history classes required of all students.

Failing to teach students about these less unifying parts of American history doesn’t mean they didn’t happen, or that the legacy of those painful events doesn’t still linger today. It just means our students will be denied the full picture. Again, it’s 2+2=6.

I’m privileged that my school’s administration, our school board, and the wider community are supportive of continuing to offer classes like the ones I teach, but I know every teacher isn’t so lucky.

To educators who want to teach these types of lessons but may not have as supportive an environment as I do, I’d urge you to remember that our role as teachers is to make sure that we teach truth and honesty.

It will require the support of more than just educators to ensure all students have access to a full, honest teaching of American history. Parents, advocates, and community members should back administrators and elected officials who support a diverse curriculum and full teaching of our history.

One of the goals of any education, particularly a patriotic one, should be for students to grow. How can we, as a country, expect our students to grow without confronting the uncomfortable parts of our past?

Kurt Russell is a veteran high school history teacher in Ohio and the 2022 National Teacher of the Year.

As part of our commitment to elevating diverse perspectives, EdTrust occasionally features guest blogs. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect EdTrust’s views or positions.